China November inflation quickens to 2 percent on year

BEIJING – China's annual consumer inflation sped to 2 percent in November from 33-month lows, data showed on Sunday, dampening the chance for further policy easing as the economy recovers.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast November inflation to climb to five-month highs of 2.1 percent, compared with October's 1.7 percent.

The National Bureau of Statistics said in the same release China's producer price index dropped 2.2 percent in November from a year ago, narrowing from October's 2.8 percent annual fall but sharper than forecasts for a 2 percent decline.

A recovery in factory-gate prices bodes well for China's corporate sector, which has been battling falling profits.

Sunday's price data support earlier indications that China's economy is finally stirring from a slump stretched over seven straight quarters, thanks in part to the central bank's policy loosening.